SuperChuck:Stolen from Football Outsiders' April Fools article. sportige = pwned

The problem with that FO article being that it's not really even incorrect. I mean, they went overboard with the ridiculous level with the all-caps...but if you continually score less than you have all season in the postseason, maybe there is an issue with your offense.

Playoff loss; most recent matchup against playoff opponent (all matchups took place in the same season:

vs Baltimore last year: 30 points in regular season matchup; 13 in playoffsvs Giants the year before: 20 points in regular season matchup; 17 in playoffsvs Jets the year before: 45 points in home regular season matchup; 21 in playoffs thanks to a garbage-time TDvs Baltimore the year before: 27 points in regular season; 14 in postseason2008: No playoffs2007 vs Giants: 38 points in regular-season matchup; 14 in Super Bowl

Is it small sample size? Sure. But not only do they suck in playoff losses compared to their regular-season totals, they suck when compared to how they played the same team earlier in the season (and it's kinda weird that they played every single team that eliminated them in the playoffs during the regular season).

I shall call it the Curse of Peyton Manning, because the last time the Pats' offense did better in a postseason matchup against a team than they did in the regular season, it was against Manning's Colts the year Manning finally won a Super Bowl.

The best satire contains pieces of the truth. I think the truth is that all teams play worse and score less when they lose. And yes, the Patriots offense deserves a good amount of blame for coming up well short in their playoff losses. But to suggest the offense needs more help than the defense is just silly.

IAmRight:(and it's kinda weird that they played every single team that eliminated them in the playoffs during the regular season).

I think that's the more interesting connection in all those losses. Is there something they're doing that makes them much easier to defend a second time around?

I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

The Giants and Ravens have the perfect blueprint to beat the Pats; beat up on the receivers. That's it. It's nothing dirty (usually) and after quarter after quarter of getting pounded after catching the ball, naturally the timing routes start to suffer.

Factor in both Gronk and Hernandez never seeming to be healthy at the same time in the playoffs, and...bam. Problem.

So playoff teams did score a bit less than usual in the playoffs, where they didn't get to play against the league's worst teams. But the difference was about a half-point per game. In fact, if you take out the Patriots' offense from both the regular season and playoffs, everyone other playoff team as a combination scored more points in the postseason than they did during the regular season.

Brokenseas:I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

I wonder if they will feel that way if they lose to Denver in the playoffs or see Denver win a superbowl. I am a Raven's fan, but I did enjoy watching Denver last year and I think Welker will be a great weapon for Manning. I can see Denver making a serious bid for the superbowl in 2014.

vladimpaler:Guess I'll state the obvious: The Patriots just aren't as good when they are not taping their opponents' signals.

eh, we've had this thread before like a billion times, the pats were +9 points total across their first 3 super bowl wins, and -7 points total across their 2 super bowl losses to the giants (Tom Coughlin > Bill Belichick as far as coaching goes in the big game), they're also playing better in the regular season since 2007 as well and Brady is actually making great QB plays and not just being a game manager and that's with the league being way more competitive nowadays than it was in the early days

i mean in a league where teams go from worst to first with just a few minor additions or coaching changes, the pats have been pretty consistent

as for their failures in the last few postseasons? besides getting outcoached in the super bowl and not having any defense that could stop anybody that year, it boils down to the same reason lots of regular season dominating teams fail in the postseason - postseason is when physical teams get the big plays, teams that rely on finesse tend to get steamrolled early and can't catch up

Killer Cars:The Giants and Ravens have the perfect blueprint to beat the Pats; beat up on the receivers. That's it. It's nothing dirty (usually) and after quarter after quarter of getting pounded after catching the ball, naturally the timing routes start to suffer.

Factor in both Gronk and Hernandez never seeming to be healthy at the same time in the playoffs, and...bam. Problem.

Hyjamon:Brokenseas: I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

I wonder if they will feel that way if they lose to Denver in the playoffs or see Denver win a superbowl. I am a Raven's fan, but I did enjoy watching Denver last year and I think Welker will be a great weapon for Manning. I can see Denver making a serious bid for the superbowl in 2014.

maybe, the rest of the AFC West had nowhere to go but up this season (especially the Chefs), AFC East seems to be regressing as usual

Yeah, the first Super Bowl loss against you guys was actually more because of your pass rush. I've never seen a front four dismantle a Patriots offensive line in the Belichick era like you guys did that day.

Killer Cars:The Giants and Ravens have the perfect blueprint to beat the Pats; beat up on the receivers. That's it. It's nothing dirty (usually) and after quarter after quarter of getting pounded after catching the ball, naturally the timing routes start to suffer.

Factor in both Gronk and Hernandez never seeming to be healthy at the same time in the playoffs, and...bam. Problem.

It's kind of ironic since the Pats' first two Super Bowls were mostly due to their defense beating up the opponents' receivers. The Colts complained so much that the league made defensive contact with receivers a point of emphasis starting in the 2004 season. Now teams are starting to realize that if you wait until the receiver touches the ball to pound him you won't get penalized (unless it's a headshot) and you can make them even less effective than they would have been if the league allowed simple contact downfield.

When a team wins 12-13 games they usually only played about four good opponents, going .500 in those games. Last season the Patriots lost to the Ravens, 49ers, Seahawks, and Cardinals. The Cards sucked but the other three were all good. The only good teams they beat were the Broncos and the Texans. So they went 2-3 against quality opponents. You can get away with up and down play against weak competition but you can't in the playoffs. They have talent to win the superbowl but they lack the consistency to win three straight against equal talent.

AdmirableSnackbar:It's kind of ironic since the Pats' first two Super Bowls were mostly due to their defense beating up the opponents' receivers.

Oh I know; come up with a template on how to slow down a modern, high-octane offense, and then morph your own offense into something which you've already provided the NFL a template on how to slow down.

The only caveat I would add is that the Pats made it even easier after Moss left by not having a true vertical threat.

Rhypskallion:"Maybe Tom Brady is a choker in his 'Golden Boy' mode, unlike the previous part of his career."

Maybe. No matter how well he does, he's not the breadwinner in the family. I wonder if that gets to him?

Maybe Tom Brady isn't actually that clutch and it was always the defense that carried him? He hasn't won since the Pats had an elite defense. Ever since the team focused around him they have lost in the biggest moments...

Killer Cars:AdmirableSnackbar: It's kind of ironic since the Pats' first two Super Bowls were mostly due to their defense beating up the opponents' receivers.

Oh I know; come up with a template on how to slow down a modern, high-octane offense, and then morph your own offense into something which you've already provided the NFL a template on how to slow down.

The only caveat I would add is that the Pats made it even easier after Moss left by not having a true vertical threat.

This.

I don't understand why they decided to forget what made them so successful. I mean you need a somewhat competent offense (the Jabar Gaffney/Rache Caldwell year was painful), but it should be secondary to a good defense.

I just don't understand why Bellicheck keeps trading for draft picks and never does anything with them. They could be drafting young, healthy, massive linebackers straight from college but they always get some prospective half-back that they trade away.

Brokenseas:I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

Your memory may be cloudy there. That 'Long bomb touchdown'? Flacco to TE Pitta for 5 yards.That was after a hit on Pitta that looked a lot like an uncalled helmet to helmet. Joe's longest TD pass of the day was 11 yards. His longest pass of the day was 26.

Well, those are based on the other 20 scores put up by teams in the playoffs.

/they're relevant; they're just not necessarily representative of anything//they do, however, lend more ammo to the side of the Pats offense sucking in the postseason compared to the regular season, while numbers stay about the same for everyone else///suppose I probably could go back a few years rather than just taking the one, but I don't need to waste THAT much time////there isn't really anything that anyone can say that indicates that there's no problem with the Patriots' offense in the playoffs

moistD:Maybe Tom Brady isn't actually that clutch and it was always the defense that carried him? He hasn't won since the Pats had an elite defense. Ever since the team focused around him they have lost in the biggest moments...

*adam vinatieri dot jpeg*

the way i remember all those patriot wins was brady admittedly making a play to get field position, but then Brady not even being on the field with Vinatieri boots a 43yd FG to win the game. when i think of awesome QB palys in the Super Bowl, I think of Elway's helicopter run, Montana's td passes, Big Ben hitting Holmes in double coverage, and the like. Brady is outstanding but it was always AV making the game winning play.

Lunchlady:Killer Cars: AdmirableSnackbar: It's kind of ironic since the Pats' first two Super Bowls were mostly due to their defense beating up the opponents' receivers.

Oh I know; come up with a template on how to slow down a modern, high-octane offense, and then morph your own offense into something which you've already provided the NFL a template on how to slow down.

The only caveat I would add is that the Pats made it even easier after Moss left by not having a true vertical threat.

This.

I don't understand why they decided to forget what made them so successful. I mean you need a somewhat competent offense (the Jabar Gaffney/Rache Caldwell year was painful), but it should be secondary to a good defense.

I just don't understand why Bellicheck keeps trading for draft picks and never does anything with them. They could be drafting young, healthy, massive linebackers straight from college but they always get some prospective half-back that they trade away.

That's not true and hasn't been for a couple years.

They traded picks for Haynesworth and Chad Johnson in the past few.

Last year they traded up twice in round one and took 7 picks. This year they only have a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and two 7ths. (May not include compensatory)

I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

Interesting how Patriot fans see that game.They got steamrolled. it wasn't close.

Deneb81:Lunchlady: Killer Cars: AdmirableSnackbar: It's kind of ironic since the Pats' first two Super Bowls were mostly due to their defense beating up the opponents' receivers.

Oh I know; come up with a template on how to slow down a modern, high-octane offense, and then morph your own offense into something which you've already provided the NFL a template on how to slow down.

The only caveat I would add is that the Pats made it even easier after Moss left by not having a true vertical threat.

This.

I don't understand why they decided to forget what made them so successful. I mean you need a somewhat competent offense (the Jabar Gaffney/Rache Caldwell year was painful), but it should be secondary to a good defense.

I just don't understand why Bellicheck keeps trading for draft picks and never does anything with them. They could be drafting young, healthy, massive linebackers straight from college but they always get some prospective half-back that they trade away.

That's not true and hasn't been for a couple years.

They traded picks for Haynesworth and Chad Johnson in the past few.

Last year they traded up twice in round one and took 7 picks. This year they only have a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and two 7ths. (May not include compensatory)

They're tapped out.

Just a note - Pats don't receive any compensatory picks this year. They have 5 picks.

Last year they traded up twice in round one and took 7 picks. This year they only have a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and two 7ths. (May not include compensatory)

They're tapped out.

I'm going to assume that people believe he continues to gain picks simply because they don't seem to get anything productive (unless it's an oft-injured, but dominant while playing, TE) from the draft.

Last year they traded up twice in round one and took 7 picks. This year they only have a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and two 7ths. (May not include compensatory)

They're tapped out.

I'm going to assume that people believe he continues to gain picks simply because they don't seem to get anything productive (unless it's an oft-injured, but dominant while playing, TE) from the draft.

They did for a while, but spent 12 draft picks in both '09 and '10. With another 9 in '11. That's 33 picks in 3 years. But that and trades for Haynesworth, Johnson, and Talib as well as trade ups have them with a pretty skimpy set of picks.

doubled99:I blame Wes Welker. Not for the drop in the Superbowl two years ago (that was 50/50 between him and Brady), but for the brutal drop against Baltimore this past playoffs.

The Pats were up by 6, and were driving to start the second half. On third down, Brady hit a wide-open Welker at the Raven's 20 with a perfect pass, and Welker tried to run before catching it, and dropped it. The Pats had to punt into a wind.

On the next couple of plays, Flacco hit a long-bomb touchdown. If Welker makes that catch, the chances are very good that the Patriots are soon up by 9 or 13. Instead, they were down by 1 and the Raven's never looked back.

That was the turning point of the game. It's no wonder that the Patriots were happy to see Welker walk out the door to Denver.

Interesting how Patriot fans see that game.They got steamrolled. it wasn't close.

They were up 13-7 at halftime. But yeah, the second half was pretty much a blowout.

Lunchlady:They could be drafting young, healthy, massive linebackers straight from college but they always get some prospective half-back that they trade away.

You mean they could be drafting guys like Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes, and Dont'a Hightower but are passing on them? And they've only drafted 5 RBs in the last 10 years. I think if Chung and Meriweather had panned out (not to mention Ron Brace, who was projected to be nearly as good as his college teammate BJ Raji) the Pats would have a fantastic defense right now.

And for some reason Belichick can't draft WRs for shiat. It makes no sense, he's got maybe the best QB of all time and can't seem to find him capable WRs through the draft and now refuses to do so via free agency, too.

Fact is that putting up all those points doesn't matter (as much) if we keep having drops at all the critical moments. Brady has near-perfect delivery most of the time. Most of the time the target receiver can haul it in. But most of the time leaves something to be desired when it's crunch time.

AdmirableSnackbar:Lunchlady: They could be drafting young, healthy, massive linebackers straight from college but they always get some prospective half-back that they trade away.

You mean they could be drafting guys like Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes, and Dont'a Hightower but are passing on them? And they've only drafted 5 RBs in the last 10 years. I think if Chung and Meriweather had panned out (not to mention Ron Brace, who was projected to be nearly as good as his college teammate BJ Raji) the Pats would have a fantastic defense right now.

And for some reason Belichick can't draft WRs for shiat. It makes no sense, he's got maybe the best QB of all time and can't seem to find him capable WRs through the draft and now refuses to do so via free agency, too.

This. also anybody remember asante samuel dropping the int in the 2008 superbowl that would have ended the giantd final drive? exactly... but its all bradys fault. laughable. BEST. QB. EVAR.

SuperChuck:I think that's the more interesting connection in all those losses. Is there something they're doing that makes them much easier to defend a second time around?

I think they're just too one-dimensional on offense. When they're stalling out and the middle of the field is clogged they don't have another option aside from "keep trying to throw it to guys in the middle of the field". You can leave the wideouts in one-on-one coverage without worrying about them breaking a big play, it just isn't going to happen. Hopefully Amendola adds a little help on the outside, and I'd like to see them draft a blue-chip RG to the mix to solidify the OLine. The next Corey Dillon or Antowain Smith (guys who wouldn't burn you for huge gains but rarely got stopped for no yardage) would be great, too.

The problem with that FO article being that it's not really even incorrect. I mean, they went overboard with the ridiculous level with the all-caps...but if you continually score less than you have all season in the postseason, maybe there is an issue with your offense.

Playoff loss; most recent matchup against playoff opponent (all matchups took place in the same season:

vs Baltimore last year: 30 points in regular season matchup; 13 in playoffs

1. Patriots' offense is based on mismatches. With the same 11 guys on offense, they can power run or go 5 wide and have an empty backfield. And they can run plays before the defense is in position or has the right package on the field.

2. They have no depth at a lot of positions. There is no Gronk 2.0, there is no hernandez 2.0, and they lack a WR who can win a jump ball. When everyone is healthy they are tough to stop. When they lose one of their players, particularly gronk, there isn't anyone who can step in and just replace them. With no deepthreat and no gronk, teams just load up the middle and dare brandon lloyd to beat a CB and Safety (hint: he can't).

3. They can't draft/sign DBs to save their life. They had a competent secondary for the second half of the season (talib, dennard, mccorty and gregory). But when talib got injured the patriots were forced to play kyle arrington (who can't cover for poop) and marquis cole (who belongs on special teams of a middle school team). You'll notice that the ravens didn't go on their scoring run until AFTER talib got injured (sometime in the second wuarter). At which point they seemed to score at will. And you'll notice, dennard wasn't getting burned, it was largely arrington and cole.

4. The patriots have a talented front 7, but lack depth and a consistent pass rush. Injuries to jones and love in the AFCCG meant the pressure was non-existant. Give flacco some time and put his WR on terrble DB...and a recipe for success.

The result is the patriots having a neutered offense and a weak defense.

vs Giants the year before: 20 points in regular season matchup; 17 in playoffs

The patriots (once again) had a terrible defense. They had no pass rush and no secondary...If you can believe it, they were worse than last year's defense. As before, Gronk was injured and the patriots had no one to replicate his skills (Gronk missed something like 10 minutes of game time in the 4th). And quite frankly, they really had no business being in that Superbowl. They had a cupcake schedule (playing weak teams and backup QBs all season; including tebow in the plaoyffs) and the raven missed a 30 yard chipshot.

vs Jets the year before: 45 points in home regular season matchup; 21 in playoffs thanks to a garbage-time TD

Honestly, this is just one of those games. The Patriots came out flat (probably a little cocky after the 45-3 beatdown) and sanchez put together one heck of a game (this game likely earned him that most recent extension). No excuses. Outplayed.

vs Baltimore the year before: 27 points in regular season; 14 in postseason

IIRC, this is game that was never even close. opening kickoff return for a TD, then ray rice's 80 yard TD...the game in which flacco was like 4/10 for 50 yards, but the ravens still won by like 20? I'm going to blame

Credit where credit is due. Giants defense played a great game. on top of that: Brady was injured, samuel dropped a game ending pick, tyree made a great play, and eli escaped from a sack. Sometimes things just fall into place.

People also forget that the patriots won all their superbowls by close margins (20-17, 32-29, 24 - 21; rams, panthers, eagles). In fact, if you look at the last 15 years, most SB games are decided by one score.